Sophomore Grant Perdue looks to up his performances on floor and vault on Saturday.

Photo Courtesy BreAnna Haessler/NU Media Relations

Courtesy: NU Media Relations

01/19/2013

MEET TWO

Huskers Prepared to Face Three Top-Six Teams

The No. 5 Nebraska men's gymnastics team head to California to face three top-ten teams at the Stanford Open. The Huskers will face No. 3 Stanford, No.4 Oklahoma and No. 6 Stanford at the Burnham Pavilion Saturday night. The meet is slated to start and 9 p.m. No live stats or video will be available. Fans can follow the team on Twitter (@NebraskaMGym) or on Facebook (facebook.com/NebraskaMGym) for updates from the meet.

The Huskers look forward to facing the Sooners again after a narrow defeat last weekend at the Air Force Academy. NU sits just behind Oklahoma in the national rankings and hopes to maintain a gradual growth throughout the season.

Scouting the Sooners

A Glance at Oklahoma

Head Coach: Mark Williams

2013 Record: 3-0

2013 High Score: 423.500 (Rocky Mountain Open, 1/12/13)

No. 4 Oklahoma started the season with a sweeping victory last weekend in Colorado. The Sooners relied heavily on freshman Josh Yee, who claimed event titles on vault and parallel bars. OU claimed titles on all six events at the meet, as well as the all-around title, which went to sophomore Alec Robin.

Scouting the Golden Bears

A Glance at California

Head Coach: Tim McNeill

2013 Record: 0-1

2013 High Score: 411.150 (against Stanford, 1/12/13)

No. 6 California looks to rebound after their close loss to rival, No. 3 Stanford last weekend. The Golden Bears currently hold the No. 1 position on floor exercise, as well as top-ten positions on all other events. Junior Jeffrey Langenstein sits at the top of the individual floor rankings with a score of 15.65 on the event.

Scouting The Cardinals

A Glance at Stanford

Head Coach: Thom Glielmi

2013 Record: 1-0

2013 High Score: 425.000 (at California, 1/12/13)

No. 3 Stanford looks to continue their winning streak after shutting out No. 6 California on the road. Sophomore Sean Senters recorded a team-high 15.05 on vault and six different gymnasts earned event titles at the meet.

Looking Ahead

The Huskers will hit the road for the west coast next weekend, facing No. 3 Stanford, No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 6 California at the Stanford Open in Palo Alto, Calif. The meet is slated for a 7 p.m. PT (9 p.m. CT) start on Saturday, Jan. 19.

Last Time Out: Huskers Finish Strong at Season Opener

Nebraska battled with No. 3 Oklahoma throughout the Rocky Mountain Open, falling by 4.6 points. The Sooners edged out NU in the last three rotations, finishing with a score of 423.500-418.900 at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Jan. 12.

Junior C.J. Schaaf led the Huskers as their only all-around competitor. Schaaf (80.900) claimed second overall in the all-around, falling behind Oklahoma's Alec Robin (80.950) by 0.05 points.

Sophomore Louis Klein also helped carry the team, competing in every event except pommel horse. Klein's strong performances peaked in a 13.65 on high bar, tying him for third overall on the event with teammate Mark Ringle.

NU saw its strongest performance on horse in an opener, tallying up an event total of 70.400. Freshman Ethan Lottman received the team's second-highest score on the event (14.70) behind junior Wyatt Aycock (14.75).

The Huskers fell behind on parallel bars and high bar, normally two of the team's strongest events. On parallel bars, Nebraska saw difficulties with their dismounts, leaving them with a team score of 69.400 on the event. The Big Red then moved to high bar, where they saw their lowest event total of the night (66.200). High bar specialist Micah Christensen struggled on his routine, finishing with a mark of 12.55.

Nebraska Breaks Top 5 in National Rankings

NU jumped to No. 5 nationally after placing second at their season opener against Oklahoma, Air Force and Arizona State on Saturday. The Huskers started the season ranked No. 9, seventh in the Big Ten. They jumped in the ranks after the first week of the season, along with Penn State, who claimed the top spot with a team score of 447.850. Illinois took the runner-up position (425.450), Stanford moved to No. 3 (425.000) and Oklahoma dropped to fourth (423.500). The Big Red is ranked third in the Big Ten, behind Penn State and Illinois.

Nebraska claimed the third spot on pommel horse and placed in the top five on floor, rings, vault and parallel bars. The Huskers just missed the top five on high bar, finishing sixth with a 66.200.

Individually, NU placed three athletes in event top ten rankings. Sophomore Andrew House claimed the No. 10 spot on floor after earning a 14.60 in Colorado Springs, Colo. Louis Klein and Grant Perdue also finished within the top 20 on floor, placing eleventh and eighteenth respectively.